Your entire basis for argument was AND I QUOTE:

"..does not mean that waterboarding is inappropriate because we *might* be "torturing" innocent people."

Now your standpoint has changed to:

"..has nothing to do with American soliders waterboarding suspected terrorists and enemy combatants..".

Make up your mind - it is either related or it is not related - you cannot have it both ways!

Or maybe you do have it both ways and it has addled your train of thought!

Anyway - this has nothing to do with the sub-thread we are engaged in! What we have been swapping ideas regarding (which you have evidently FORGOTTEN) is whether, what you think you KNOW to be fact, can be relied upon as a validation of your actions. You cursory dismissal of some bloke getting shot in the underground while running away from the cops was the entire basis for my initial post! You can't simply act on something unless you KNOW it to be a fact - you Americans are so insular perhaps that is why you went overboard after 9/11. Not one of you ever gave any thought to all the European countries that were practically levelled during the second world war.

9/11 was America's first ever experience of a homeland attack, apart from Pearl Harbour which, if you were perfectly honest you would acknowledge the average Yank never really gave a **** about other than acknowledging that it had happened.

I'd wager a pound to a penny, the stereotypical American viewpoint was completely indifferent to the thought of terrorism on September 10th 2001. Guaranteed. Period.